CVE-2017-8050 in Appliance
Summary
by MITRE
Tenable Appliance 4.4.0, and possibly prior, contains a flaw in the Web UI that allows for the unauthorized manipulation of the admin password.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 09/19/2020
The Tenable Appliance version 4.4.0 and potentially earlier releases contains a critical security vulnerability that affects the web user interface implementation. This flaw represents a significant authentication bypass issue that could allow unauthorized individuals to manipulate administrative credentials without proper authorization. The vulnerability specifically targets the password management functionality within the appliance's web-based administration interface, creating a pathway for malicious actors to gain elevated privileges and potentially compromise the entire security infrastructure.
The technical implementation of this vulnerability stems from inadequate input validation and insufficient access controls within the web UI components responsible for password modification. Attackers can exploit this weakness to manipulate administrative password settings through crafted requests or direct interface manipulation. The flaw likely exists in the server-side validation logic that fails to properly authenticate and authorize password change requests, allowing any authenticated user or even unauthenticated attackers to modify administrative credentials. This represents a classic authorization bypass vulnerability that can be categorized under common weakness enumeration CWE-285, which deals with improper authorization mechanisms in software applications.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends far beyond simple credential compromise. An attacker who successfully exploits this flaw could gain full administrative control over the Tenable appliance, enabling them to modify security policies, disable monitoring features, access sensitive network data, and potentially use the appliance as a pivot point for attacking other systems within the network. The appliance serves as a critical security monitoring and assessment tool, making this vulnerability particularly dangerous as it could allow attackers to evade detection while maintaining persistent access to the network infrastructure. This aligns with ATT&CK technique T1078 which covers valid accounts and privilege escalation through legitimate credentials.
Organizations utilizing Tenable Appliance versions 4.4.0 or earlier should immediately implement mitigations to address this vulnerability. The primary recommendation involves applying the vendor-provided security patch or upgrade to the latest available version that contains the necessary fixes for the authentication bypass flaw. Network segmentation and access control measures should be strengthened to limit exposure of the appliance to untrusted networks, while monitoring should be enhanced to detect unusual administrative activities. Additionally, administrators should conduct immediate credential rotation for all administrative accounts and implement multi-factor authentication where possible to reduce the impact of credential compromise. The vulnerability demonstrates the critical importance of maintaining up-to-date security software and the potential consequences of failing to apply security patches in a timely manner.